2.5yr Old Heifer Not getting in calf

[bundycowgirl]

Hello all
I own a pure bred Brahman heifer "Maddie" who will be 3yrs old this november 2010 and I have had her running with 3 different bulls since November 2009 and she is still not in calf?? She is in perfect physical condition.

I will admit at first I just expected her to be in calf and when it came to her due date and the rest of the cows were calving i could defainitly tell she was empty so I then got her in and preg tested her and she was empty so then I started Tail painting her and she has now had 3 cycles and is still not in calf as she cycled just this week. her cycles are normal 18-24days between cycles and the bull she is currently with is a proven bull and she is in the paddock with just him and 2 other cows.

She is not a twin and i brought her directly off a registed brahman breeder streight off the cow as a weaner and she was then halter broken and hand fed grain and hay/grass for 12months she was really really quite till i turned her out with the rest of dads cows about a year ago and now she is quite crazy but when she is in the stock yards and i throw a rope over her she will stand there nice and quite and i can tie her up and pat her and all. The breeder i purchased her off said that he had a heifer that went silly like she is because she was empty/not in calf and after she had a calf she went back to being very quite so i am really hoping to get this one in calf as she is my first brahman and I have always wanted one and said i would keep this one till she died of old age but if i cant get her in calf I will be forced to sell her and buy another one.

So what i was hoping to find out is dose anyone have any ideas on what might be stopping her conceiving? I thought maby cist on the overys but that is uncommon in heifers? I have worked many years on dairy farms but most of the problems i have ever incured where with cows that have had calves and are having trouble getting back in calf due to being dirty.

So if you have any ideas on what it could be and what the treatment is please let me know I thought i would try here before i fork out the $200 it will cost me to get the vet to look at her then the cost of the treatment but that is the next step if she dose not get in calf soon!

 

[dun]

Too fat, too thin, cystic ovarys, or although she wasn;t born a twin, she could have been conceived a twin to a bull and bull was sloughed/reabsorbed. Unless you want her for a big semi-unruly house pet she eithers needs to go in the freezer or back to the breeder. Although this late in the game it's probably not soemthing that the breeder will be willing to do.

 

[bse]

I had a angus heifer i just had to sell for the same reason she was well bred probably my best heifer at the time i bought her open A.Id her twice stayed with proven bull for 6 months she was getting bred but wouldnt stick i did the blood test for pregnancy she came back bred with low #s the next day she was in heat again had her checked in every way no explination the vet said i could flush her may or may not work so i cut my loses and put her om the truck the guy i sold her to looked at her immediatly and said she will never breed she had no teats so you may look at that and save your $200 she was also 2 1/2 years old when i finally sold her. Sometimes its tough maybe you will find the answer good luck.

 

[TexasBred]

Maybe a couple of the brahman breeders can help. Brahmans mature a little latter than many other breeds but if she's been with the bull she might be bred by now. Have someone preg check her.

 

[novatech]

Maybe a couple of the brahman breeders can help. Brahmans mature a little latter than many other breeds but if she's been with the bull she might be bred by now. Have someone preg check her.

Unfortunately you are right about the late sexual maturity. I feel this is a result of poor selection over the years and a P poor excuse. Mine are calving as 2 year olds. A lot of breeders want them to calve as a 3 year old. They say it prevents calving problems. (BS IMO) To me it is a years free ride on the pocket book.
I would take her to the vet and have her palpated. That should not cost more than 25 bucks. If she is not cystic or the cause is determined to be something not heritable then you can decide from there. If she is that late maturing then you do not want to use her as foundation stock.
If you send her on her way keep her pedigree. You may want to refer back to it and not make the same mistake twice if by chance it is something genetic. In the selection of breeding stock it is just as important to look for bad traits as good ones.
I think most breeders would agree that fertility is #1 on their list of desirable traits.

 

[HFX]

Cut your losses and replace her. If she isn't in calf now she will be a rising 4 year old and at the end of the day she is enjoying a pretty good 'holiday'. She is either a very late maturing heifer or has an underlying fertility issue. Alot of the focus on Brahmans has been towards size, high EBVs and larger mature cow weights (a personal opinion). Increasing these criteria can decrease the fertility and functional aspects of the cow. These females tend to have a higher maintenance requirement and thus there is less energy available to put into conception and milk production. The severity of these impacts will be increased depending on your region/available nutrition. We get calves out of our best females (moderated softer more feminine types) at 24-25 months without any calving complications and they're back in calf without supplements at any stage or they're culled. Novatech has made a pretty good point with regard to fertility and foundation stock.